When it comes to Japanese carmakers, there's a big three just like with the American ones. Comprised of Toyota, Honda, and Nissan, Japan's "big three" differ in that one underdog has managed to stick around and find success of their own in niche areas.
That brand, of course, is Subaru. Having been the strange yet reliable outdoors niche car brand, Subaru may not be as successful or big as brands like Toyota, but they've got their own rich history and manufacturing prowess as well as a highly dedicated and loyal fanbase that is beyond passionate about Subaru and the cars they make.
But, as the obscure dark horse, many of the things that makes Subaru so interesting get ignored or forgotten. That's a shame though, as Subaru has a truly fascinating history and plenty of quirks that make them such an interesting brand.
10 Porsche Designed A Special Edition Legacy
The Legacy has been Subaru's mainline sedan (and wagon) for decades, proving itself to be reliable, practical, and very capable with its AWD system.
But, while the Legacy is great as a daily driver, it's not exactly what you'd call an exciting car. That is, unless it's one of the special edition turbocharged Legacy models, and even among those, there exists one Legacy that's shockingly cool. Named the Legacy "Blitzen," this special edition has a body kit and wheels designed by none other than Porsche, as well as a twin-turbo boxer motor putting down 280 HP. As cool as it is, it's also one of the rarest Legacy models out there, making it an affordable dream car for Subaru fans.
9 They Built Apache Attack Helicopters
While Subaru is one of the few independent large scale automakers left, as a corporation, they're involved in several other industrial areas including aviation.
Once known as "Fuji Heavy Industries" Subaru's parent company is now known just as "Subaru Corporation." But, while still operating as the Fuji Aerospace division, Subaru Corporation won a contract to build the legendary Boeing AH-64 Apache attack helicopter under license for the Japanese Army. So, when it comes to iconic vehicles made by Subaru, the deadly Apache stands side by side with the WRX.
8 They Were Born From A WWII Fighter Plane Manufacturer
Before Fuji Heavy Industries was born, there existed the Nakajima Aircraft Company leading up to and during WWII.
Producing several workhorse fighter planes for the Japanese Air Force and Navy, Nakajima's aircraft wreaked havoc on Allied forces during WWII, including being used in the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Because of this though, their factory was targeted by American bombers and utterly annihilated. After WWII ended, the remnants of the destroyed Nakajima company joined forces to create Fuji Heavy Industries, who later formed Subaru as a company.
7 Their First Vehicle Was A Scooter Made From Aircraft Parts
Known as the Fuji Rabbit, Japan's first motor scooter was built by the newly formed Fuji Heavy Industries.
Much like the Vespa scooter, Japan's situation immediately after WWII was bleak. With many industries and their overall economy destroyed, cheap motorized transport was urgently needed. Answering that call, Fuji Heavy Industries repurposed parts made by the former Nakajima aircraft company, like bomber tail wheels, to create the Fuji Rabbit in 1946. The Rabbit was a hit, and without it, we may not have beloved Subaru cars like the WRX on the road today.
6 The Forester Was Sold As A Chevrolet
No, this isn't some DIY emblem swap, the Subaru Forester was indeed sold under the Chevrolet name and badge in India for several years.
It may seem like an incredibly odd choice with no real relation between the brands, but GM owned a portion of Fuji Heavy Industries at the time. In typical GM fashion, the Chevrolet Forester was a straight re-badge, with nothing to differentiate it from the Subaru Forester except for Chevy's gold bow-tie badge up front.
5 The WRX Was Sold As A Saab
Speaking of GM owning a portion of Fuji Heavy Industries, in the early 2000s GM owned Saab as well, which led to an odd but cool mashup between Sweden and Japan.
Using a WRX wagon as the base, Saab re-styled the rally-bred wagon with their own touches and sold it as the 9-2X. Nicknamed the "Saabaru" by both Saab and Subaru enthusiasts, the 9-2X retains the turbocharged boxer motor from the WRX, as well as the signature AWD system, but has a more refined interior thanks to Saab. Whether its automotive blasphemy or the perfect mashup is up to you, but one thing's for sure, its a strange and obscure, yet fascinating footnote in the history of both Saab and Subaru.
4 The Brand's Cosmic Meaning
While most car brands are named after their founder (i.e. Ford, Ferrari, Toyota), Subaru took a different approach to their branding.
Meaning "Seven Sisters" in Japanese, the Subaru name is a direct reference to the Pleiades star cluster. Comprised of 12 super bright stars, only 6 stars of the Pleiades cluster are readily visible from Earth, but 7 are commonly referred to in Japanese and Greek mythology. If the cluster's formation looks similar, that's because it formed the inspiration for Subaru's original logo, although the modern badge takes some creative liberty with the formation's shape.
3 They Produced An Anime
As mentioned previously, Subaru takes its name and logo from the Pleiades star cluster.
Taking inspiration from that for the name and overall theme, and working with the anime studio Gainax, a 4 part anime called "Wish Upon The Pleiades" was produced by Subaru and released for viewing on Youtube in 2011, as well as a full-length TV release in 2015. The main character is named Subaru, but otherwise, it has nothing to do with cars, instead of following the classic anime genre of magical girls fighting mysterious alien forces.
RELATED: Check Out These Wild Anime-Wrapped Sports Cars People Actually Drive
2 They Made A Wood Panel Forester
Subaru as a brand likes to stray from the ordinary, positioning themselves as the more obscure and adventurous Japanese automaker.
But some adventures aren't worth going on, in this case, it would be the Forester Woody that no one really asked for, or even wanted. Unveiled as a concept at the 2010 Chicago Auto Show, the Forester Woody was a 1999 Forester with 1950s inspired (fake) wood paneling and hubcaps that belong on an American classic rather than a Japanese SUV. Thankfully the wood panel idea ended here for Subaru, and the Forester Woody can be appreciated as a ridiculous concept rather than an eyesore you have to look at in traffic.
1 They Made The First Zero-Waste Factory In The USA
Based in Lafayette Indiana, Subaru's American factory is an impressive place, producing all of Subaru's cars for North America with great efficiency.
But perhaps the most impressive part though, since 2004, Subaru's factory has sent nothing to landfills, using incredibly efficient recycling to become the first zero-waste factory in the USA. None of their techniques are trade secrets either, as Subaru is more than happy to help teach other companies how to achieve similar environmental friendliness, backing up their outdoors eco-friendly image with genuine action.